We saw one of these at Dale Hollow at the Tennessee Fly-In (a hydrofoil event) It was being towed behind a yamaha jetboat at pretty fast speeds. The riders were falling off at wild angles and heights at very fast speeds. They were with a rental pontoon.....nuf' said!

bigmac

06-28-2006, 03:27 PM

Fox News is reporting another 'tube kite' death.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,201346,00.html

We saw one of these at Dale Hollow at the Tennessee Fly-In (a hydrofoil event) It was being towed behind a yamaha jetboat at pretty fast speeds. The riders were falling off at wild angles and heights at very fast speeds. They were with a rental pontoon.....nuf' said!

A teen ager was discharged from a kite tube at an unsafe height on a lake about 45 minutes south of here this past weekend. He broke his leg, but was also found to have torn his aorta (AFAIK, he's alive). This is a classic decleration injury. In a study done at the Presidio in San Francisco, it was found to universally be the cause of death in suicide jumpers from the Golden Gate bridge.

gr8smiles

06-28-2006, 03:48 PM

It will be interesting to see how quickly 'class action lawsuits' start with these things.

dog paw

06-28-2006, 03:55 PM

I saw one of those things on our lake last week. The knuckleheads were trying to pull it with a PWC It didnt have the grunt to get much air. I have spent many a hour on a towable but I have absolutly no use for them now. Aflac is not a option for me :D

point1234

06-28-2006, 04:57 PM

http://www.channel3000.com/news/9435944/detail.html

here is another one in wisconsin

opps my bad different link same incindent

bbeach

06-28-2006, 05:23 PM

2 weeks ago we pulled these kite tubes from our shelves and our website and won't sell them again according to our legal dept! Smart move I would imagine...

Davo

06-28-2006, 05:36 PM

WOW. I agree with Gr8 - it's going to get ugly for this company....regardless of how many warnings they have on this product.

It's a shame because in my opinion these people are not using common sense and/or heeding the warnings.

gr8smiles

06-28-2006, 06:01 PM

There's a certain amount of Darwinism inherent here....little common sense, alchohol or otherwise impairment, excessive speed, lack of any protective gear or helmets....glad I am not in this fight...this could get ugly for all inflatable towables....would that not change the lakes some.....hhhmmmm

bigmac

06-28-2006, 06:04 PM

There's a certain amount of Darwinism inherent here....little common sense, alchohol or otherwise impairment, excessive speed, lack of any protective gear or helmets....glad I am not in this fight...this could get ugly for all inflatable towables....would that not change the lakes some.....hhhmmmm

Hhhmmmm... if the company does quit selling them, I wonder what my lawyer and I could get for mine on ebay....more? or less? than the purchase price...

gr8smiles

06-28-2006, 06:28 PM

Dr Mac,

Per another thread ( your ranting thread... ;) ), my hydrofoil only weighs 30 lbs. and the billet aluminum strut strapped to my a$$ is 39 inches, and it only takes a slight change in lean angle to launch my big butt waaaayyy over my tower.

However, I am wearing a helmet with earcovers, surgical tape over my nose, (sometimes i wish I had a cup), and sometimes even 2 vests for impact protection. It is also my choice and I know that I am pushing a limit, but it is a hell of a way to push it! :headbang:

bigmac

06-28-2006, 06:44 PM

Dr Mac,

Per another thread ( your ranting thread... ;) ), my hydrofoil only weighs 30 lbs. and the billet aluminum strut strapped to my a$$ is 39 inches, and it only takes a slight change in lean angle to launch my big butt waaaayyy over my tower.

However, I am wearing a helmet with earcovers, surgical tape over my nose, (sometimes i wish I had a cup), and sometimes even 2 vests for impact protection. It is also my choice and I know that I am pushing a limit, but it is a hell of a way to push it! :headbang:

Nuts...now you've invalidated my entire argument... ;)

Seriously, I doubt that double vests would protect against the deceleration injuries that tear thoracic aortas, and while a helmet might offer some impact force protection for the brain, there is a body of thought (among some wakeboarders) that suggests such a helmet only serves to amplify the possiblity of a neck injury. For my hydrofoil, as I struggle with inverts, I wear a helmet for fear of hitting my head on some heavy part of the foil. Otherwise, it's just something to hang the ear protectors on, which ARE valuable IMHO since (as I've discovered) a moderate amount of off-axis on a landing means an off axis face-plant (ear plant).

stevo137

06-28-2006, 06:53 PM

I did see one on the lake fathers day weekend and even at slow speeds into a headwind it seemed quite eratic and unpredictable.
As I have said from the beginning, I would not have anything to do with these tubes but we all make our own choices.

I definitely don't agree with pulling ANYTHING behind a PWC. I think that they should outlaw it.

gr8smiles

06-28-2006, 07:02 PM

Nuts...now you've invalidated my entire argument... ;)

Seriously, I doubt that double vests would protect against the deceleration injuries that tear thoracic aortas, and while a helmet might offer some impact force protection for the brain, there is a body of thought (among some wakeboarders) that suggests such a helmet only serves to amplify the possiblity of a neck injury. For my hydrofoil, as I struggle with inverts, I wear a helmet for fear of hitting my head on some heavy part of the foil. Otherwise, it's just something to hang the ear protectors on, which ARE valuable IMHO since (as I've discovered) a moderate amount of off-axis on a landing means an off axis face-plant (ear plant).

I have noticed that my neck muscles and traps get pretty sore after a long weekend. I too am concerned about the ear rupture (my son has had 2....1 from a tube that was behind a friend's boat who happens to be a semi-erratic driver, and the other the next summer from learning a tantrum on the wakeboard)

That may be the same argument that the 'no helmet' biker crowd uses. I bet Ole Ben Rothlesberger wishes that he had a full face helmet now.

I have also felt the effects of the 39" lever arm.....ouch

I am surprised about all the slalom injuries that you are reporting. I would have thought that wakeboarders and knees would win...although I did get my worst concussion ever from a wakeboard....a heelside 180 thrown big wake to wake and landed it toeside and caught the front edge. :eek:

You do have the Cinchmax strap and footstays for your foil don't you?
They will really keep you in place.

Cinchmax.com

Lonnie is the man.

bigmac

06-28-2006, 07:24 PM

That may be the same argument that the 'no helmet' biker crowd uses. I bet Ole Ben Rothlesberger wishes that he had a full face helmet now.Maybe, but I'd be concerned about the effects of the drag of the water on the helmet and what it would do to a neck. Just idle speculation that makes me not invalidate the concept out of hand. Even so, I wear a helmet for foiling. I am in mind, however, of the impassioned argument made by the local major wakeboard store here when I went in last year to try to buy a wakeboard helmet. He gave me an earful...

I am surprised about all the slalom injuries that you are reporting. I would have thought that wakeboarders and knees would win...although I did get my worst concussion ever from a wakeboard....a heelside 180 thrown big wake to wake and landed it toeside and caught the front edge. :eek:
I suspect that it's a reflection of the local preferences for towable water sports. Tubers rule for sheer numbers. Slalom skiers are a fairly close second. Next is wakeboarders, but there are only a few. Then there are the hydrofoilers (me), then the kite tubers (me again). People here on our lake just shake their heads at "crazy 'ol Doc..."
You do have the Cinchmax strap and footstays for your foil don't you?
They will really keep you in place.

Lonnie and I are best buds :) . I like to log onto the Yahoo Chair Chatter's group and tout the obvious benefits. Boy does that get the Air Chair company peoples' panties in a twist.

http://mccollister.info/cinch/board.jpg

Leroy

06-28-2006, 07:27 PM

I think the ultimate water sports helmet would have a front face mask (protection for face plants and out the fronts) and protectors over the ears.

gr8smiles

06-28-2006, 09:22 PM

Lonnie and I are best buds :) . I like to log onto the Yahoo Chair Chatter's group and tout the obvious benefits. Boy does that get the Air Chair company peoples' panties in a twist.

http://mccollister.info/cinch/board.jpg[/QUOTE]

I tell people that Lonnie is the best friend that I have that I have never
met.

wiltok

06-28-2006, 09:37 PM

I have an air chair with those little safety buckles that Air Chair sells. I have to upgrade to Lonnie's foot stays. I do have the Cinch on the rope - but am still worried about my feet coming out. Always wear a helmet too - can't be too careful!!

bigmac

06-29-2006, 06:41 PM

I have an air chair with those little safety buckles that Air Chair sells. I have to upgrade to Lonnie's foot stays. I do have the Cinch on the rope - but am still worried about my feet coming out. Always wear a helmet too - can't be too careful!!

The foot stays are simple to put on - a few minutes with a power screw driver. They work great, and are easier to get into than the rubber dealies that came with it, not to mention MUCH more secure. IMHO, the easiest way to get hurt on a hydrofoil is for your feet to come out of the bindings, which allows the foil to come around and bonk you on the head.

http://mccollister.info/cinch/footstays.jpg

The Cinch Max belt was a little more complicated. I added the angled brackets too, but that belt works very well, and avoids the buckle wearing a hole in your dry/wet suit, plus it's easier to get nice and snug.

http://mccollister.info/cinch/bracket.jpg

http://mccollister.info/cinch/seat.jpg

tex

06-29-2006, 07:10 PM

Lonnie is the man. All of his products are top shelf! He has the best customer service of anyone in the watersports industry by far!

tex

06-29-2006, 07:11 PM

I have noticed that my neck muscles and traps get pretty sore after a long weekend. I too am concerned about the ear rupture (my son has had 2....1 from a tube that was behind a friend's boat who happens to be a semi-erratic driver, and the other the next summer from learning a tantrum on the wakeboard)

That may be the same argument that the 'no helmet' biker crowd uses. I bet Ole Ben Rothlesberger wishes that he had a full face helmet now.

I have also felt the effects of the 39" lever arm.....ouch

I am surprised about all the slalom injuries that you are reporting. I would have thought that wakeboarders and knees would win...although I did get my worst concussion ever from a wakeboard....a heelside 180 thrown big wake to wake and landed it toeside and caught the front edge. :eek:

You do have the Cinchmax strap and footstays for your foil don't you?
They will really keep you in place.